The Last to Leave
by CeciltheGleek
Summary: The gravestone had haunted him for years, and Finn Hudson knew that the decision he made years before had been a mistake. One-shot of Finn's experience with the army.


**Hey fellow Gleeks!**

**This story was actually an English assignment of mine which I did about a week ago, so I thought because I hadn't updated in an awfully long time I would just tweak it a little to make it apply to my favourite show of all time. I did this because assignments and schoolwork is all I can do lately, but my breaks coming up! So hopefulyl I will be able to write more :)**

**Anyway, so this is just a short one-shot about War (that was the theme of my assignment). Warning: Character death.**

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><p>The violent waves were tumbling down the beach while the trees danced to the tune of the wind; thunderously beating the sand to the rhythm. Yet the beach had been silent for years, and remained melancholy as three mourners ascended onto the graveyard. The roses bowed slightly at the site of the two veterans and their lady solemnly passing by, who were weaving through tangled twigs and uneven stones. Barely noticing the winds threat, Finn Hudson saluted gracefully toward the beaten gravestone, while Rachel Berry, the love of his life, sobbed endlessly beside him. The third veteran gloomily stood on the other side of Rachel, taking his turn to pay his respects to his fallen comrade, laying a wreath at his grave. Finn remained frozen, his thick brunette hair whipping back and forth, with icicles forming on the surface. But he wasn't cold. Finn had not been cold for two years. He had not felt the stinging pain in his chest, nor experienced his girlfriend's comforting touch.<p>

"_Please don't go Finn!" Rachel begged as she rocked in his arms._

"_Hey hey!" He comfortingly cooed. "I'm going to be fine Rach! It won't be for long!" _

"_A day would be long enough…" she cried. _

"_Hey!" He urged, lifting her chin. "I'm so sorry I'm too stupid to get into college," he said with a smile, earning an aggressive punch from Rachel. "But serving in the army is going to do me heaps of good. And when I get back I might be able to get a REAL job and actually take care of you!"_

"_Finn I can take care of myself! If I have to I'll sing on the street!" Finn raised his eyebrows questioningly. "Okay yes maybe that's a bit dramatic, but the point is I can get work anywhere. Just don't go!"_

_Finn shook his head. "I'm not going to distract you and waste time from your dream just because I can't find a good job. And plus, I want to do this Rach! I wanna do some good in this world…follow the footsteps of my dad!"_

"_That doesn't bring me much comfort," she said, another tear racing down her cheek._

_Finn sighed. "I won't end up like him Rach." He firmly stated, eyes locked into his girlfriends to drive the message home._

_Sniffling a few more times, Rachel began to rub the tears off her face, blinking ferociously to stop the flow from continuing._

"_You promise?" Rachel asked, offering her palm to Finn by resting it on his lap._

_In response, Finn clasped it as lovingly but solidly as possible, leaning forward to softly kiss his girlfriend. "I promise."_

"_And you'll never let go?" She desperately asked._

_Finn only squeezed her hand tighter._

If only he had known. Looking back, Finn had not even slightly changed in his physical features. His hair had not grown, resting on the muscles that remained tense. His height was still unnatural, often making his feet sore of the constant work they had to do to hold him steady. But emotionally – everything was different. He could have enjoyed life over the past two years, but instead had been drowning in a destructive memory, desperately trying not to let go. He was constantly haunted by a single gravestone, which could not be erased from his mind.

_The metal clashing from all sides and the roaring of rifles as they mercilessly snarled at their opponents taunted the soldier. The piercing gunshots numbed Finn's ears as he clumsily fiddled with the trigger. Dust catapulted suddenly into his pupil and Finn ducked. waiting for the thump to occur and fade only a few metres in front, signaling another loss for the Americans. He cursed silently, before sneaking his eyelids above the trench while hastily sliding the gun out. At quick request, the bullet spiraled through the air towards an unknown target. Finn remained motionless, following the chunk of metal with his hollow eyes to its destination. He nervously awaited the cry from the other side, silently wishing he had avenged his brother in arms. When another bullet flew his way, Finn ducked once more causing pain to his already bruised legs (the added height did not help in this situation). As he felt the vicious air swoosh past his position, Finn squeezed his gun even tighter, closing his eyes and remembering the promise he had made Rachel. The gun acted as a substitute for her hand, and for a moment Finn could feel the warm pleasure of her embrace. However a sharp yelp intruded his concentration. Jerking his head to the side, Finn found the disturbance. "PUCK!"_

_Finn's best friend crashed into the earth like a speeding meteor, a red river emerging to paint the lifeless dirt. Without hesitation, Finn abandoned his rifle and launched himself to the side creating a shaded cove around his friend. The red river, now a lake, devoured the rough sand, and he knew he had to find a medic before the wound created a beach of its own. Slithering one arm around Puck's waist, scrunching the crumpled uniform in his fist, he tensed his muscles and slowly lifted the soldier. The smell of burnt gunpowder and thick smoke dazed Finn and befuddled his concentration - but more than that, he could feel the thin blood oozing across his trembling hands. The drum in his chest began pounding harder and at a deafening pace, but he could not stop. An antelope fleeing from a starving lion, Finn sped as fast as possible. But here, the lion's roar didn't come long before its bite, and Finn had to dive into the shadows to avoid it. Though he landed on a bed of irritant sand, the thick red pool on Puck's chest surrounded his hand. And with each dribble, a second was lost._

_A medic could not be reached safely; Finn unfortunately realized. So impulsively (to save his friends life) Finn, to the beat of his own heart, began to pound Puck's chest, desperately calling for assistance, even with dirty smoke clogging his throat. The blood had now become so great that Finn could almost taste death on his lips, but this only made the drum beat faster, hands working rapidly. The slow tossing of Puck's hand interrupted Finn's process however; eyes fluttering open, glancing helplessly toward the endless ocean. However he felt another presence near him, and Puck pathetically struggled to turn his head, gazing into the eyes of his best friend._

"_Finn…" he fearfully pleaded, reaching out towards his comrade. Finn grabbed the hand, leaning over and breathing warm air onto his face._

"_I won't let go." Finn whispered, only clasping the hand tighter. Finn was so engulfed in his promise, that he did not hear the Lion roaring towards them again. When the world went black, the last thing Finn remembered was engulfing Puck's fist with his own, holding onto his promise. But before he drifted away, Rachel's despaired face fluttered into his mind, and his hand only tightened further at her memory._

The bloody and bruised scars still remained, the battered torso still hung loosely off his shoulders, and for two years his fist had remained clenched. Finn's bowed head was heavy, but he glanced up once more to examine the gravestone. _Here lies Finn Christopher Hudson_. After Rachel's whimpers, Finn attempted to comfort her, but she did not welcome his ghostly touch. Instead, she fell into Puck's arms; a warmth that Finn could no longer offer. However, Puck too was fighting back tears at the memory of his best friend - lost saving his life.

"I miss him so much Puck," she howled into his chest.

"Me too," he empathized, crushing her in his arms once more and rubbing comforting shapes into her back.

"He promised he'd never let go," Rachel sobbed.

"Hey...he didn't." Puck assured her. She looked up to meet his drowned eyes. "I don't know how long I laid there getting treated, but all I cam remember is that the entire time, he was holding onto my hand." He smiled reassuringly. "Our hands." He rubbed Rachel's palm with his own. "And if you ask me, I feel like he has been with us all along."

Rachel nodded in solemn agreement, releasing herself from his tight embrace and gazing at the grave stone once more.

"I love you Finn Hudson."

If nothing else, Finn could still feel his jagged nails clenched into his palm, holding onto Rachel and Puck for dear life. He loved them so much, and being unable to tell them that caused unbearable pain. For two years he had waited for his loved ones to return, searching for solace all along. But with their arrival, now he knew: It was time to let go.

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><p><strong>Hope I didn't make it too confusing! Or sad. Thanks for reading!<strong>

**Oh by the way, for those waiting on my other story a thousand apologies! I feel so guilty everytime I think about how long I've left it, and literally get tears forming in my eyes because I just feel awful. I love writing so much and my reviewers :( Im so sorry for my delay. But for those who don't know, here in Australia only your senior year of high school counts towards your college/uni application stuff. And I'm in my senior year, so its so important for me to focus. Especially when the work load is so great. But another update should be coming round in a week! (And thats my rant for today).**

**Please review! Critical feedback is especially welcome because I really want to improve my writing :) How do you reckon I went on my english assignment? :P**


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